Collect Absences from Google Calendars

This n8n workflow is designed to periodically scan Google Calendars for absence events and then compile and send a summary email. It's ideal for teams or organizations that need to track employee or team member absences regularly.

What it does

This workflow performs the following key steps:

1. Schedules Execution: It runs on a predefined schedule (e.g., daily, weekly).
2. Fetches Current Date: Determines the current date to use as a reference for filtering calendar events.
3. Retrieves Google Calendar Events: Connects to a specified Google Calendar to fetch all events.
4. Filters for Absence Events: Processes the retrieved events to identify those marked as "Absence" (or similar, based on configuration).
5. Formats Absence Data: Transforms the raw calendar event data into a structured format suitable for reporting.
6. Composes Email: Generates an email containing a summary of the identified absences.
7. Sends Email: Dispatches the compiled absence report email to a designated recipient(s).

Prerequisites/Requirements

To use this workflow, you will need:

• n8n Instance: A running instance of n8n.
• Google Calendar Account: A Google account with access to the calendar(s) you wish to monitor for absences. You will need to set up a Google Calendar OAuth2 credential in n8n.
• SMTP Server/Email Service: Access to an SMTP server or an email service (e.g., Gmail, Outlook) to send the summary emails. You will need to set up an Email (SMTP) credential in n8n.

Setup/Usage

1. Import the Workflow:
   • Download the provided JSON file.
   • In your n8n instance, go to "Workflows" and click "New".
   • Click the "Import from JSON" button and paste the workflow JSON or upload the file.
2. Configure Credentials:
   • Google Calendar: Locate the "Google Calendar" node. Click on the "Credential" field and select an existing Google Calendar OAuth2 credential or create a new one. Follow the n8n documentation for setting up Google Calendar credentials if needed.
   • Send Email: Locate the "Send Email" node. Click on the "Credential" field and select an existing Email (SMTP) credential or create a new one. Provide your SMTP server details, email address, and password.
3. Customize Workflow Nodes:
   • Cron (Node ID: 7): Adjust the schedule to your desired frequency (e.g., daily, weekly).
   • Google Calendar (Node ID: 317):
     • Specify the Calendar ID of the Google Calendar you want to monitor.
     • Adjust the Time Frame for fetching events (e.g., events for the next 7 days).
     • Ensure the Filters are correctly configured to identify "Absence" events (e.g., by event title, description, or custom properties).
   • Function (Node ID: 14): This node will likely contain custom JavaScript logic to parse and filter the calendar events. You may need to modify this code to match the specific naming conventions or properties of your absence events in Google Calendar.
   • Edit Fields (Set) (Node ID: 38): This node is used to format the data for the email. Customize the fields and their values to create the desired email content.
   • Send Email (Node ID: 11):
     • Set the To email address(es) for who should receive the absence reports.
     • Customize the Subject and Body of the email using expressions to include the absence data from previous nodes.
4. Activate the Workflow: Once configured, activate the workflow by toggling the "Active" switch in the top right corner of the workflow editor.

The workflow will now run automatically based on your defined schedule, collecting and reporting absences.